Spring is springing

Hurrah for Spring!  Today is the World's Most GORGEOUS Day!  It is windy, true, but I've always been fond of a breeze.  The temperature is just about perfect - not too hot, not too cold but just right (as Pooh Bear would say... or was it Tigger?)

This is the view from my front verandah as of about 10 minutes ago.  Spud is sitting here reading the Sydney Morning Herald and I am trying to ward off feelings of panic arising as I think about the uni work I am not doing in preference to writing my blog!  The best thing about uni since I last wrote is that, with the sage advice of my beloved Spud, I have come up with a topic for my Thesis next year. I am going to write about obituaries.  Yep, obits.  I love to read a well-written obituary because they are a window in another person's fascinating life!  And everyone has a fascinating life, just some are more fascinating than others, that's all.

In a wild burst of optimism I wrote to the editors of some of the world's best obituary columns, just to ask if there was ANY chance at all of spending a week in their offices, watching them working?  If I don't ask, how will I ever know?  So, I've asked...  Now I will sit back and keep my fingers crossed and see what happens.  I've also made contact with a journalism professor in Adelaide who is an expert on obituary writing.  We spoke on the 'phone yesterday and he is So Lovely and Friendly and so excited that I will be writing about obituaries!  So, how lucky am I to score a contact like that?  Now to do lots and lots and lots of research. I have this book from the library...

.... and have downloaded another on my Kindle.  Dr Starck in Adelaide has written a book which is available at my uni library and he has also written many, many journal articles on the subject AND a thesis that he is going to share with me.  Lucky me!  Then there are the obituary pages of the aforementioned newspapers to scan regularly.  Oh, and then there is my regular uni reading and assignment writing to do AND I have a job!  Almost forgot about THAT!  :o)  I love my job.  Love it.  The editor has given me a journalist-type job that I am working on, together with an executive producer and graphic artists so that's exciting and I am really enjoying the experience.
In other news, Spud finally relented and agreed to take on the challenge of the EKKA this year.  The EKKA is the agricultural show of Queensland so there are chooks, dogs, horses, sheep, cattle and bees, baby animals, wood chopping, cake decorating, crafts, painting and baking.  And rides on merry-go-rounds and whirling tea-cups (and scary rides too) and show bags and plenty of junk food.

This huge ice-cream was actually completely HEALTHY!  It was!  It had dairy and fruit...  Calcium, fibre.  The pink cone had fresh strawberries in it, with a scoop of the most delicious vanilla and strawberry ice-cream, a tiny blob of cream (dairy!) and another fresh strawberry on top.  It was certainly one of my Top Ten ice-cream experiences of all time.  I am a bit of an expert after all.

This quite scary guy was a steward and obviously something to do with the cattle display... obviously, derrr.  Okay, okay so he was trying to bring some attention to his beloved tropical fish and did say it is difficult to get that attention in the show arena when you are competing with one-tonne plus Brahman bulls and prancing ponies.

Time to get back to the books now.  As for the newspapers... well, this week I had a moment of being OVER the news but apparently that is normal for a journalist and is all dependent on what's IN the news. Right now, here, it's all about the Houston Report on asylum seekers, Julian Assange and the boring, tedious, childish, dull, irritating behaviour of our politicians.  Yawn.  Cheerio!